I don’t have good leadership skills because this is something that I have never before had to work at. Now I am having to acquire these abilities and acquire them fast. I pause, wondering what to say next.

This, anyhow, is what I thought about today. I was at a morning meeting, with an individual who’s assisting Pete, me, and another board member, in putting together a fundraising plan.

I was, at one point, sitting in a chair, next to our assistant, and wanting to say, “well, I’m the executive director, and therefore I should be exempt from fundraising.” But then I got to thinking about it and I realized that the person in charge was attempting to broadly define what fundraising is, and what the board members might do in this respect. And right then it occurred to me, to say that I need to provide the framework of a leader, which is someone who people trust and look up to.

Wheel came off the wagon

This, in some ways, has been lacking. I have pissed off and alienated more volunteers than not, and those who remain are doing what they are doing for the sake of a project, not because they care about me or what I have to say.

I’m working at doing better at this. So, the meeting ended and I finished getting ready for the day’s event, which takes place on the lawn of Palmer Visitor Center. I then sent one person over to this area, and she returned shortly thereafter with the news that another organization was occupying this space.

I said I’d do recon and go and check this out. I have to say that entering the side area was like stepping into a dream. It was surreal. There were people standing behind tables, and kids everywhere, hanging out in inflatable houses, playing games, sitting with their families at picnic tables. I’d estimate that there were, all told, close to 200 individuals milling around.

I talked to the administrative assistant about this – she was very empathetic. I went back and forth, one minute I was mad and the next I was conciliatory. I told her that I didn’t expect this, but I should have known that this was going to happen.

And really, this was predictable. This was a green space, located across the street from a farmer’s market, where everyone is crowded together. Humans tend to disperse – look at Jones Beach in New York City. People will spill into least populated areas.

I did the best I could at thinking on my feet and talking with our arrivals, our volunteers, about the situation. We ended up further down from our usual spot -- we set up. And parents and children found us. I coached our volunteers on what to say and let many people know about our upcoming Summer in the Park(s) program.

And I created a turtle toss, one in which kids had to get the hula hoop around the plastic stepping stone turtles.

The prize was books. This was revelatory to me – I figure that this was a sign – that our imaginations are going to guide our thinking this summer. We’ll see.

Next: 140. 5/23/26: Our Inner and Outer Landscapes